Art Room Updates

Dear Families,

Welcome to the new school year with Art classes taught by Mr. Woodward. If you are new to the district my name is Ryan Woodward and I will be the teacher for most of the art classes at Upton and Addams Elementary Schools. Maria Elliot was a wonderful addition to our team last year and covers the classes that I do not see. This is my Eighth year at the elementary schools, and last year I also began teaching at Churchill Alternative High School Also.

New families and students starting kindergarten this year should be receiving an email from Artsonia soon. This is the program we use to document all of the student work throughout the year. Some projects may not come home right away if I am displaying them, so this is an excellent way to see current work and also keep a portfolio that will show artistic growth. The program will also have fun ways that you can order items with your child’s artwork printed on them. A portion of the proceeds also come back to the program helping to ensure we have quality materials for our lessons.

My goal is always on process over the final product, so understand that not every project will look beautifully refined, but will be an expression of your child's imagination. I try to avoid projects that have students follow step by step where everyone ends up with the same thing. I strive to create an environment where students feel comfortable and safe to express themselves and be creative.

I will send out updates as we progress, but many projects take weeks, maybe even months as I only see the students once a week. Below is a quick list of what each grade will be starting the year with. Please reach out with any questions.

ryan.woodward@royaloakschools.org

Sincerely,

Ryan

DK = Experimentation with materials

Kindergarten = Line shape and color paintings in a modern style

1st Grade = Memory paintings inspired by Faith Ringgolds’ Tar Beach

2nd Grade = Mata Ortiz inspired effigy ceramic pinch pots

3rd Grade = Surrealism based projects

4th Grade = Photography with Ipads broken down People-Places-Things

5th Grade = 1 point perspective drawings of the front of the school